Gemma came to NASAP January 2015 from the local pound. She was abandoned on the highway and picked up by bylaw officers. She is very sweet and gentle natured to her core. Her owners came forward at the pound and officially surrendered her, leaving a note that she had knee issues in her back leg and a small story about her life. Poor Gemma as a puppy was found abandoned in a garbage bag with her throat cut. She was immediately rescued and brought to a vet who saved her life. She still has a very faint scar on her neck because of this but loves everyone and shows no signs of psychological or behavioural issues because of this. when we found her at the pound eager to love and super approachable, she was quickly placed in foster care with us. She came to us at 5 years old and she is extremely well behaved and well mannered.

She went for an initial assessment but the vet couldn't confirm the severity of the damage to her back left knee. We quickly got her in an appointment at Guardian vet to see a orthopaedic specialist. They discovered she had a complete tear of her cruciate ligament and a severe amount of scar tissue surrounding her knee joint to stabilize it. They estimated the injury happened years previously so we scheduled the surgery as soon as possible. She compensated amazingly well prior to the surgery and barely showed any signs of distress or pain even after playing for hours or jointing her foster family for a long walk or run. She loved to be active and would never complain about human companionship. The only sign of distress was that she would favour her leg walking up stairs and occasionally momentarily after a long workout.

At the beginning of June she went to Guardian and had a tibial plateau, bone graft and meniscus scar tissue removal. The surgery was lengthy but extremely successful and her long and very slow rehabilitation process began. Guardian recommended that her rehabilitation process would take 4 months and her foster home agreed to take it slow and make the journey with her. The first week was good and her sedation kept her calm post operatively, however her energy and happy nature came back full force after a couple of days and she was a ball of energy bursting at the seams to run free and frolic. Her family was good and kept her as calm as possible to persevere the surgery site. At 6 weeks she returned to guardian for a follow up X-ray, receiving a glowing review about how well the surgery was healing. The rehabilitation continued slow and steady.

Unfortunately due to her lowered immune system and medication regime she got an ear infection at post operation week 8. We were able to quickly correct this with drops and a change in diet. Then at week 10 she got a cold and cough and was diagnosed with kennel cough. She was treated quickly and antibiotics were extremely effective.

She continued her rehabilitation process until October. However with only a few weeks left in her rehab it was found she was limping on her right hind leg! We confirmed she had the same injury on her opposite hind leg - a complete tear of her cruciate ligament and a severe amount of scar tissue surrounding her knee joint! On October 30, 2015, she underwent a second tibial plateau, bone graft and meniscus scar tissue removal but this time on her right knee. She went through another 6 months of rehab, slowly regaining her strength and agility. And on March 16, 2016, her foster home made it official and adopted her!! After 15 months in foster care she had always been officially home - she has 2 little dog siblings and 2 amazing young boys who love her, a mom who takes her on daily runs and a dad who dotes on her tirelessly.

Gemma’s success story was only possible because of the amazing generosity of our supporters and her amazing foster home!!